


The Goddamn Snickerdoodle

by DrSinge



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Absolute Tomfoolery, F/F, Feelings, Happy Ending, Hidden Pikachu in one of the artworks, I REGRET NOTHING, I WILL NOT APOLOGIZE, I guess it really wants to drive home that I have zero regrets, I wrote the epilogue for the lesbian jokes, It's a fluffy ending, Literally everyone knew about the feelings except for the two idiots with the feelings, Not the best laid plans, Pining, Sundaes, The Town Ships SwanQueen, Truth Serum, Zelena has good intentions, ao3 put some of my tags in all caps, but good intentions, snickerdoodles, which is how I like it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:21:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26226319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DrSinge/pseuds/DrSinge
Summary: Emma and Regina were not ones to meddle with a good thing. They both cherished the friendship they'd built between them and neither was keen on risking it by pressing for more. Unfortunately, Zelena didn't share their concern. Now half of SwanQueen is on a truth serum and the other half is a very confused Emma Swan.
Relationships: Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan
Comments: 66
Kudos: 396
Collections: Swan Queen Supernova V: Forever Starstruck





	1. Strange Encounter

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RegalLady36](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RegalLady36/gifts), [PrincessBread](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessBread/gifts).
  * Inspired by [It Was One Damn Snickerdoodle (ART)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26224078) by [RegalLady36](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RegalLady36/pseuds/RegalLady36). 
  * Inspired by [Vault of memes [ART]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26071483) by [PrincessBread](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessBread/pseuds/PrincessBread). 



> Thank you to the wonderful artists, PrincessBread and RegalLady36, who created amazing art pieces to go with this story!!!! Thank you to Zelene for betaing large chunks of this work; you made a huge difference. And thank you to the mods for putting this event together.

Ever since Emma’s divorce a little less than a year ago, she’d found herself spending more and more time over at 108 Mifflin Street. It started as just an evening or two a week, then it was two or three evenings, plus every time Henry had a sleepover, Emma would happen to be in the neighborhood with a bottle of Regina’s favorite red wine. Now it seemed to happen more often than not, and the key Regina had given her (“because, Miss Swan, I’m tired of pausing to open a door you’re more than capable of opening yourself”) was definitely losing its shine and sporting several scratches from being pocketed with her Sheriff’s badge.

So, nothing seemed out of the ordinary when Emma got off work early that day and decided to drive over to Regina’s to see if she wanted help cooking dinner. It wasn’t until her key was in the lock of 108’s front door that she noticed something was off. Where silence usually awaited her, or the occasional humming Regina denies vehemently to be guilty of, there were muffled, angry voices buzzing through the door, angry voices that sounded a lot like Regina’s and Zelena’s.

Slowly, Emma pocketed her keys, not wanting to intrude on whatever Regina was in the middle of, but her feet remained stubbornly planted on the porch. She knew she should turn around, and for a moment, she really did try to convince herself to leave the sisters to their own devices. After all, that would’ve been the most reasonable thing to do…

But Emma really wasn’t known for being the most reasonable person, and her curiosity was piqued. Honestly, Emma's only heard Regina shout once, and that was mostly to be heard over the roar of a borrowed chainsaw that had been hacking at her apple tree. Regina was always in control of her emotions and prided herself in her self composure. She hadn’t even raised her voice last week when Emma accidentally knocked over a shelf in the vault, shattering the potions that had been meticulously arranged on it (which hadn’t reacted well together and flooded the vault with spoiled milk scented smoke, but that’s a story for another day).

Even if Regina were going to shout at someone though, Emma wouldn’t have guessed it’d be Zelena. The two may squabble and antagonize one another constantly but they hadn’t really fought in years. So, propelled by curiosity and the fair certainty that Regina would tell her to come back later if it really was a bad time, she rang the doorbell.

The shouting stopped almost immediately, and Emma waited patiently for the silence to be replaced by Regina’s heels clicking towards the entryway. However, the silence continued to stretch and stretch until the door was huffily jerked open without warning.

Regina appeared on the threshold, and the irritation rolling off the woman was nearly tangible. But that anger seemed to flee as abruptly as Regina had appeared at the door. Brown eyes widened with what looked like panic as they recognized the bemused sheriff. Concerned and confused, Emma opened her mouth to ask what was wrong but before she could get the first syllable out, Regina disappeared in a plume of purple smoke.

Taken off guard, Emma was left blinking at the spot Regina had been standing in until, deeper in the house, Zelena’s voice called for her sister, “Regina?” Realizing her mouth was still opened slightly, Emma snapped it shut just as a set of heels began to clip towards the entryway, accompanied by a disgruntled, “Oh, so now you’re not speaking to me? I wish you would’ve started with that punishment.”

Zelena stalked around a corner and sighed when she caught sight of the sheriff. “Oh God, it’s you again.” She dismissively flitted her gaze away from Emma and glanced around the room. “Well, where is she?”

Emma felt her forehead crinkle, “Who?”

Zelena’s attention snapped back to Emma, apparently unimpressed with the sheriff’s response. “My sister, obviously.”

Emma shoved her hands into her back pockets, “I don’t know. She opened the door and then just disappeared.”

Zelena’s eyes took on a disconcertingly amused glint, “Regina saw you and immediately magicked herself away?” At Emma’s nod, Zelena snorted, “I knew that ‘you’re-imagining-things’ was bollocks. That woman doesn’t have a subtle bone in her body, and you-” Zelena’s eyes ran over Emma before she shook her head, “Don’t even get me started.”

Emma wasn’t sure what Zelena was talking about, but the trademark Mills’ sneer directed at her likely meant she was being insulted. However, feeling far more confused than offended, Emma rocked back on her heels and asked, “Do you know what that was about?”

Zelena chuckled as she sauntered towards the door. “Don’t worry, Savior. I imagine you’ll be finding out soon enough.” And with that, the redhead flicked the door closed in Emma’s face.

Emma blinked at the golden 108 on the door for a moment before finally stepping away. She slipped her phone out of her pocket as she walked back to the bug and opened her messages with Regina, quickly typing out,  _ You want to tell me what’s going on? _

She was unlocking her car when she got Regina’s response, a very to the point _No._ She rolled her eyes just as her phone buzzed again. _And don’t forget to take Henry to the dentist tomorrow for his four o’clock appointment._

__ Emma flopped into the driver’s seat and texted back  _ Yes, your Majesty _ . She chucked her phone into the cup holder, expecting a snarky retort to be waiting for her by the time she got home. It never came.


	2. How It Happened

The day had started out dull, and in hindsight, Regina really wished she hadn’t taken it for granted. She’d been in her home office all afternoon, filling out paperwork about the hoard of irate sprites that smashed the back wall of Game of Thorns last week and watching Robyn while Zelena baked in the kitchen. She wasn’t sure what Zelena was baking, but the faint sounds of her sister’s cackling interspersed with the clank of pots and some light swearing was enough to keep her from going to find out.

It was nearing four o’clock when Zelena triumphantly flounced into the office announcing, “You may now add the culinary arts to my very long list of mastered skills,” as she plopped a plate of small, lumpy cakes on top of Regina’s paperwork.

Regina peered over the top of her glasses at the cakes and skeptically prodded one with her pen. “I’d hold off on ordering your chef’s hat,” she said as she wiped away the bits of sludgy chocolate clinging to the pen cap.

Zelena didn’t seem the least bit bothered by her sister’s lack of faith as she plucked her toddler off the ground and into her arms. “They’ll firm up once they’ve set,” she assured. “I’ve even made some of the cinnamon snicker-whatsits for Emma. She’s still coming round for dinner, isn’t she? Or has she finally gotten tired of waiting for you to shag her?”

Regina glanced sharply at where her niece was perched on Zelena’s hip and said, “They’re snickerdoodles, and Emma isn’t waiting on anything of the sort.”

Zelena snorted and turned her attention to Robyn who was launching into a detailed description of her Lego tower.

“… and-and it’s green cause that’s your favorite color,” the toddler finished by holding the tower against her mother’s nose to ensure she could see the various green blocks the masterpiece was composed of.

“Well darling, as someone who’s seen quite a few castles, I must say this one puts the rest to shame.”

Robyn beamed, “Really?”

“Absolutely, and in a year or two when you’re old enough to handle power tools, I’ll be expecting you to build me my very own.”

“Okay!” Robyn quickly agreed before pointing at the plate Zelena brought in, “Can I have one?”

Zelena shot Regina a smug look, “That, little sister, is the proper enthusiasm.” She turned back to Robyn, “You can have one as soon as we finish dinner. Of course, that’s only if Auntie Gina’s swooning over the sheriff doesn’t gag us to death before then.”

Robyn wrinkled her nose and sagely agreed, “Yeah, it’s ‘gusting.”

Zelena chuckled and corrected with a kiss on the toddler’s cheek, “It’s _dis_ gusting, sweet pea.”

Regina cast the pair an unimpressed glance as she finished up the last bit of her report, though the look was slightly marred by the reluctantly amused smirk she couldn’t quite stave off. “You’re both incorrigible. And you’ll both be fine as there will not be any swooning.”

Robyn shook her head, “Promises, promises.”

Zelena threw her head back and laughed, “Ha! My darling girl hasn’t fully grasped potty training yet, but she can see you and Emma are hopeless for each other.”

“Or,” Regina drawled, “She’s heard you incessantly talking about it since Emma divorced Hook.”

“Oh please,” Zelena scoffed, “I’ve incessantly talked about how in love you two are before she even married the pirate. You’ll remember I’m the one who told you to object during the ceremony and whisk her away into the sunset.”

Regina rolled her eyes, “Vividly, and I told you Emma has never had romantic feelings for me, she wouldn’t have appreciated me ruining her wedding, _and_ we were running against a very time-sensitive curse.”

“The first two are bollocks, and the third was the reason why my exact words at the time were ‘whisk quickly before the bloody black fairy curses us all.’”

Regina chuckled as she stood from her desk and walked over to the pair. She kissed Robyn on the cheek and whispered, “Your mother’s insane.”

“That may be,” Zelena said, “but that doesn’t explain why Emma kept stealing glances at you instead of Hook _during_ their wedding ceremony.”

Regina sighed, “I’m going to go prep the chicken.”

“Fine,” Zelena conceded, seeing Regina was finished with the topic for the moment. “I’m going to go see if I can get her down for a quick nap before dinner.”

The trio made their way down the hall and Zelena had just split off for the foyer when she called after Regina, “And remember, genius cannot nor should ever be contained.”

Regina paused with her hand on the swinging door that led to the kitchen. _What the hell is she- oh no._ “Zelena, what exactly am I going to find behind this door?”

Zelena answered from the stairs, “Hopefully, you’ll find an appreciation for how much work I put into those chocolate cakes for you.”

Feeling significantly more afraid than the last time she’d fought a magical beast, Regina pushed open the door. It looked like Zelena had attempted to frost the cakes and coated the kitchen instead. There was chocolate all over the counters and cabinets, the island was littered with mixing bowls, and the faucet was running into an overflowing sink. She quickly turned off the tap and waved her hand to vanish the mess and clear away the dishes her sister had used. It may be an easy clean up for her, but it would be nice if her sister attempted to tidy up after herself.

Regina was checking to make sure Zelena had at least remembered to turn the oven off when she noticed a tray of the snickerdoodles her sister mentioned. Unlike the cakes, the cookies were neat little circles with a perfect dash of cinnamon sugar across the top. She gingerly picked one up and found it warm to the touch. She carefully sniffed it, and it smelled as amazing as it looked. There had to be a catch. She cautiously took a bite, and the warmth from the cookie flooded her body. It was delicious, possibly better than Regina’s own baking.

That thought made Regina a little sad. What if Emma preferred Zelena’s snickerdoodles to hers? She had made it a habit to bake them for the sheriff’s station every month, and Emma always came by her office afterwards, swearing Regina was trying to make her put on weight and making her promise to never stop. Of course, Regina would still bake for the station, but it would take something away from the affair if her baking was no longer the best in Emma’s eyes.

Regina shook her head and turned towards the refrigerator _. God, I sound like a teenager. It matters to me if Emma likes my baking best._ Regina paused as she was pulling vegetables out of the crisper. She’d meant to say that it _doesn’t_ matter to her. _Because it matters to me if Emma thinks my baking is the best._ That was odd. Regina placed the vegetables on the counter and took a deep breath. She was fine. Zelena was just getting into her head. She tried again, this time out loud, “It matters to me if Emma thinks I’m the best.” Regina froze, _This can’t be good._

That was when Zelena walked into the kitchen, “I’ve got Robyn down in record time. She’s only pretending to be asleep, but I’m pretending I didn’t notice.” She looked expectantly at Regina, waiting to hear why she should turn back around and make sure her daughter actually takes her nap. However, instead of getting a response, Zelena noticed her sister turning a delicate shade of green. “Regina? Are you alright?”

“Something’s wrong.”

“Alright,” Zelena waited for Regina to elaborate, but after a full five seconds of silence she prompted, “Do you know what’s wrong?”

“I care if Emma thinks my baking is better than yours.”

Zelena snorted, “So is what’s wrong that you’re realizing you’re unhealthily competitive or unhealthily competitive about being Emma’s favorite?”

“I didn’t mean to say that I care. I wanted to say that I don’t care!”

Zelena’s forehead furrowed, “Well, then say that you don’t care.”

“I care!” Regina threw her hands up.

Zelena appeared to be getting mildly concerned and asked, “Are you running a fever?” Without waiting for an answer, she thrusted the back of her hand against Regina’s forehead.

Regina swatted her away and tried a new phrase, “I take my coffee with lots of cream and sugar.”

“I thought you take your coffee black. What’s that got to do with anything?”

Beginning to realize the horror of her situation, Regina murmured, “I can’t lie.” She watched as Zelena’s attention snapped from her to the cookie sheet on the counter.

“What did you do when you came into the kitchen?” Zelena asked. She sounded nervous. _Zelena_ sounded nervous.

Regina ran a hand through her hair, “I came in, I tried one of your obnoxiously good snickerdoodles, started getting ingredients out-”

“You ate a cookie?” Zelena asked.

“Yes, I-”

Zelena rushed over to the oven and pointed at the empty space on the tray, “The cookie that was right here?”

Regina felt a sense of dread washing over her, “Yes, the cookie that was right there.”

“Why would you do that!?”

“What do you mean why would I do that!? It’s a plate of cookies on the counter, Zelena. People eat cookies left on the counter.”

“You had an entire tray to choose from, and you chose that cookie?”

“I just picked one! I didn’t realize that would be an issue.” Regina huffed, “Why? What was wrong with it?”

Zelena scrunched her nose and admitted, “I might have dabbled with a bit of truth serum while I was baking.”

“Zelena!”

“What,” Zelena snapped defensively, “It’s not like I was planning on actually feeding it to someone. I never do.”

Regina narrowed her eyes, “What do you mean you _never_ do?”

Zelena looked like she wanted to magic her own mouth shut, “I might, occasionally, have sprinkled a bit on Emma’s food.”

“YOU WHAT?”

Zelena’s eyes widened, “It was just a little spritz on her bit of salmon or side salad here or there and then I made sure she got another one.”

Regina squeezed the bridge of her nose and tried to count to ten. She made it to two before exploding, “Why? Why would you put _truth serum_ in Emma’s food?”

“I get bored!” Zelena defended, “And watching you two fawn over each other is revolting, so I picked up a hobby. I put a little pinch of serum on Emma’s food and think, just for a moment, about how quickly we could wrap up the nauseating tension between you two with a short little bout of frank, harmlessly uncontrollable honesty.” Zelena pointed between herself and Regina, “I’d get to eat without fighting the urge to vomit, and you two could finally resolve all that pent-up sexual energy. Everyone wins!”

“Zelena, how does this seem like anyone is winning?” Regina seethed.

“Well, one could argue-”

Regina impatiently waved her sister’s words away, hearing the doorbell and realizing they were shouting at each other.

Regina lowered her voice and hissed, “I’ll go get rid of whoever that is, but this conversation is far from over.”

“Oh good,” Zelena sassed under her breath.

Regina gave her sister a last glare before magicking herself to the foyer. She impatiently whipped the front door open, ready to make whatever poor soul at the door rue the day they heard of her street, when she was confronted with startled green eyes and an unnecessary amount of red leather.

The mayor’s heart hadn’t plummeted so quickly since the night she first met the savior. Her pulse was pounding away in her throat, and it seemed like Emma was moving in slow motion. She was opening her mouth, probably to ask Regina what was wrong, and Regina knew she couldn’t let her do that. Not while she was under the influence of the serum. So, she did the only thing she could think of. She magicked herself into her vault’s secret room.

The smoke around her cleared and revealed a room similar to the mayor’s office, just with Evil Queen memorabilia and different furniture. She hadn’t had a use for the room in years, so it was cold, a little dusty, and could use some airing out, but Regina couldn’t bring herself to care. She dropped onto the nearest couch with a groan. _Of course, Emma would be the one to show up at my door when I’ve just taken a truth serum._

Feeling a migraine beginning to nip at her temples, Regina slipped her phone from her pocket and texted her sister, _How long will this last?_

After several moments of Regina staring at the ceiling, her phone buzzed with an answer from Zelena, _Three days?_

Regina groaned and then saw the text from Emma light up her screen, _You want to tell me what’s going on?_

Regina’s head throbbed as she texted Zelena, _Please, tell me the question mark is a typo._ Then responded to Emma with a very honest, _No._

Zelena texted back, _The question mark is a typo._

Regina felt the tension melt away from her body, _Really?_ She texted back. Three days wasn’t too bad. Henry was at Emma’s for the week and she could manage her mayoral duties remotely. She could stay in the vault and-

Her phone buzzed with another text from her sister, _No, but I was trying to make you feel better._

Regina groaned and quickly realized that meant she may not be seeing Emma anytime soon, because Regina didn’t have any secrets that she cared about keeping anymore, save for one. Emma would be the one to draw it out of her in a heartbeat, and she was the one she could never tell. So she toggled back to her messages with the sheriff and reminded her to take Henry to his upcoming dentist appointment before blocking her number. It was going to be a long three days. Regina internally sighed, _I hope it’s only three days._ Hope never worked out well for Regina.


	3. In the Vault

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you want a visual on how the vault connects to the secret room in the vault, check season two, episode twelve and start it at 12 minutes and 34 seconds.

It was day four, and Regina could feel her sanity beginning to untether itself out of sheer boredom. The serum hadn’t worn off in the slightest, and the only person she’d talked to during that time had been Zelena, who came by each day to bring her food and try to convince her to come home. On the first day, she’d also suggested Regina just rip the Band-Aid off and tell Emma about her feelings. Regina had very clearly expressed her feelings about that suggestion with a well aimed fireball that singed a few red hairs and left a scorch mark on the wallpaper. Zelena had wisely refrained from making a similar suggestion since.

The one positive thing about this ordeal was that Regina’s productivity had vastly swelled while in isolation. She’d held several important conference calls, gotten two weeks ahead in paperwork, and created a projected budget report for next year. She’d frankly impressed herself with how much she could get done when she didn’t have a toddler, a teen, and another adult-size, redheaded toddler claiming her attention throughout the day. Not to mention the time she saved by not texting the ‘sheriff-who-must-not-be-named-while-this-damn-truth-serum-is-in-effect’ at all times of the day. She may have also read one of the ludacris child-wizard books Henry had left in her vault, if only to finally tick it off her to-read-list once and for all.

It was actually supposed to be her week with Henry, but she’d texted him earlier that morning to let him know he should just stay with Emma for an extra week. Her heart had sunk a little when it became apparent he wasn’t going to bother to text her back. Regina had sighed and made herself focus on the various ways she could reorganize her bookshelves. She and Henry were in a good place now, and it was probably normal teenage behavior to not respond to every text they got from a parent. Still, she was just a bit tender to the idea of Henry ignoring her after how far they’d come, and she was aggravatingly sensitive to her feelings at the moment. Apparently, it was another side-effect of the serum; she had to be honest with everyone around her, herself included.

Regina mentally shook herself. She really needed to focus on something more constructive. She considered the bookshelf again and briefly contemplated the merit of arranging her books by color before quickly dismissing the idea. She'd never be able to find what she was looking for, and the fact that the idea crossed her mind was proof that Emma was influencing her far too much. She grabbed a book at random and had just decided to rearrange by category when she heard the familiar sound of someone clomping down the stairs in too large feet. She drummed her fingers along the edge of the book’s spine as a strange wave of apprehension and relief washed over her. She should have guessed he’d come looking for her. _He never did follow directions well_ she thought in fond exasperation. 

She waved her hand at the mirror on the wall, and the image of Henry looking around the vault for her filled the glass. She was fairly certain he didn’t know about the room she was in and became more sure of that the longer he spent searching the vault. Realistically, she imagined she could stay hidden, until Henry called out for her, “Mom?” 

The secret door between the room and the rest of the vault magically swung open, because no, Regina could not stay hidden when her son asked for her. “In here, Henry.”

Henry poked his head through the door, “Hey Mom,” he grinned. “Aunt Z said I should come check on you.”

Regina rolled her eyes at the bookshelf, _Of course, she did_. Outloud, Regina politely hummed. “Did she?” 

She heard Henry walk farther into the room and begin to poke through some of the objects that were neatly organized around the room as he answered. “Yeah, she said you’ve been down here for the last few days.”

Regina hesitated before responding, “I have been.”

Henry’s footsteps stopped somewhere by her desk. “Did you two get into a fight?”

Already dreading where the conversation was undoubtedly headed, Regina sighed. “Yes.”

“Is that why you’re in the vault?”

“Partially.”

“Huh,” Henry paused, “Is the rest of the reason that you’re on a truth serum?”

Regina dropped the book she was holding and whirled around. She opened her mouth to ask how he’d known but instead the serum prompted her to answer, “Yes.” 

Henry smirked, and seemed to read the question she’d wanted to ask on her face. He hefted an open book off her desk and explained, “You left this out.” He turned the book towards himself. “You underlined ‘the duration depends on the dosage, as well as the weight and power of the victim’ on the first paragraph of a chapter titled ‘The Truth About Truth Serum.’” He seemed far too pleased with his base level detective skills. Regina supposed that was her own fault for being so careless, but she’d honestly forgotten about the few minutes she’d spent reading the first lines of the book that’d confirmed serums had to be waited out, just like Zelena had said.

Henry placed the book back on her desk and walked towards the two armchairs facing each other over a coffee table. He sank into one and looked expectantly at her; Regina took the hint and sat in the other chair. 

Henry cleared his throat. “So,” his lips twitched like he was trying not to laugh.

Regina raised an eyebrow and repeated, “So?”

Henry looked amused and raised an eyebrow back. “Well, I already know I’m adopted, so that can’t be why you’re down here.” Regina couldn’t decide if being raised around her snide sarcasm or if having Emma’s smart ass genes was ultimately responsible for that comment. Henry’s amusement faded though as he continued, “The town already knows about the curse and the E.Q. stuff, but you’re a hero now.” _Damn, it’s Snow’s penchant for heart-to-hearts._ Henry continued, “I want to ask why you’re hiding down here, but if I did, you’d have to tell me, right?”

“Right,” Regina sighed. She magicked two bottles of rootbeer and grabbed the one closest to her. She could guess where the conversation was headed and wondered if it would be of bad form to magically infuse a splash of cider into hers. 

Henry leaned forward and plucked his own bottle off the table and shrugged, “ _So_ , I’m not asking.” Regina paused with her drink halfway to her lips and Henry continued, “It’s up to you if you want to tell me why you’re down here.”

Regina was quiet for a moment. She was disappointed with herself for how little she’d expected from her son, because she’d really expected him to come in and start fishing for answers, like he used to do when he was younger. Instead he was being kind and patient, and the pride she felt for the young man she helped raise was what drove her to hesitantly begin, “I-,” she took a deep breath, “I’m afraid of running into Emma.”

Henry was very clearly trying to maintain a neutral expression as he propped his head up on his hand and hummed. “Mhm.” He looked a lot like when he was little and trying his best to be patient but not being very successful at it. _Maybe not all the way grown up then._ She chuckled, and Henry quickly interrupted her thoughts. “Mom?”

“Yes, dear?”

“Do you want to expand on the Emma thing or…?” he trailed off and watched her hopefully. 

“I’m not sure yet,” Regina answered. She noted the way Henry’s face fell a little and tilted her head. “Is there something you’d like to tell me?”

Henry shook his head. “Nope.” However, Regina could practically see the cogs turning in his head. They quietly observed each other for a moment before Henry casually, too casually to be casual, took a sip of his drink and nonchalantly said, “The other day though, I was thinking that it’s been awhile since Ma’s had a date. We could talk about that if you want.” He cleared his throat. “You know, while you figure out if you want to talk more about why you’re afraid of running into her.”

Regina narrowed her eyes, “You, a seventeen year-old boy, were thinking about one of your mothers’ dating life?”

Henry’s eyebrows furrowed as he placed a hand on his chest, the picture of scandalized innocence, “I’m a very caring son.”

“Mhm,” Regina suspiciously hummed. She waited for him to continue, but Henry seemed content to let his observation about Emma marinate. Eventually she prompted, “Is there any particular reason you want to talk about Emma’s dating life?”

Henry shook his head again, “Just sharing a thought I had.” He drummed his fingers against his chair for a second before snapping them and saying, “You know, now that I think about it, it’s also been awhile since you’ve had a date.”

Regina decided she rescinded her earlier thought about Henry being too mature to fish for answers, but the corner of her lips quirked up into a smile. “And?”

Henry settled himself more comfortably into his chair. “And, I’ve heard that sometimes parents don’t date cause they think their kids will get upset.” His head was angled towards the bottle in his hand, but Regina could see him watching her out of the corner of his eye, probably trying to gauge her reaction as he continued, “So, I just wanted to let you know that I would be okay with you two dating.” He left a very pointed pause. “You know, again, in case you were worried.”

Unsure how to react to her son rather obviously hinting at her and Emma becoming an item, Regina said, “Thank you, Henry. That’s very… considerate.” Which was true in some odd way. If she thought she had a chance at successfully pursuing Emma romantically, she would have wanted to know whether Henry would support the match or not.

Henry nodded his head, “Of course, I just want to be really clear that I have no problem with you and Ma getting together.” He picked at his nails for a second, and his lips started twitching again before he finished, “With anyone you might be interested in.”

Regina shook her head in amused exasperation, “You’ve inherited your other mother’s subtlety.”

Henry grinned, “Would you say that’s one of the things you _love_ about me?”

She didn’t even try to fight the serum when it pressed her to answer, “Yes, I would.”

Henry’s face fell, and he winced slightly, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that.”

“I know,” she said kindly. She still wasn’t sure whether her feelings for Emma were something she wanted to discuss, but it was clear Henry was getting invested in them, and she didn’t want him to get his hopes up. She set her bottle down, “Henry, my feelings for Emma aren’t complicated. I love her.” Regina’s eyes squeezed shut in vexation as Henry spit up the mouthful of root beer he’d been about to swallow; and so she tried to correct, “That’s not what I-”

But it was too late. Henry had already jumped out of his chair and triumphantly claimed, “I knew it!”

“Henry,” she patiently began.

However, Henry appeared to be too excited to notice her, “I didn’t think you’d admit it, but I knew it!”

“Henry!” Regina called louder. He finally noticed his mother was trying to get his attention and turned towards her. “I didn’t mean to say that my feelings aren’t complicated-”

“But-” Henry interjected, looking like he didn’t understand why they weren’t already planning an elaborate first date for her to take Emma on.

Regina quickly cut him off, because she really didn’t want him to get his hopes up, “Listen, please.” She waited until he sat back down. “I love her, but I’m only admitting that because of the serum. I have no intention of telling Emma.” Henry was looking mutinous, but he didn’t interrupt. “I care for her too much to risk losing the relationship I already have with her.” She took a deep breath, he wasn’t going to like the next part, “Which is why I’m telling you no operations of any kind to push Emma and me together.”

“What!?”

Regina gave him a stern look, “I mean it. I don’t want you coming up with any operations or codenames or-” Henry mumbled something under his breath, and Regina paused, “What was that?”

Henry sighed, “SwanQueen.” At her confused look, he elaborated, “It was the codename for an operation I already had planned that was going to start a few weeks before Christmas to get you two together.”

She didn’t even want to think about how uncomfortable Emma would be to discover her son wanted her with his other mother, or worse, if she found out about Regina’s actual feelings. Maybe the serum was a blessing in disguise, since it allowed Regina to put an end to that fiasco before it even started. However, not wanting to hurt Henry’s feelings, she said a more neutral, “Isn’t ‘SwanQueen’ a little too on the nose for one of your operation names?”

Henry rolled his eyes, “It was a compromise. You should have heard the other options.” 

That caught her attention, “Who were you compromising with?”

Henry shook his head, “I’ll call off the operation and won’t plan another one, if that’s what you really want. _But,_ I’m not giving up who I was working with.”

Regina looked unimpressed, “Zelena?”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Henry shrugged. 

She narrowed her eyes at him, but he seemed to have inherited her poker face. “Alright,” she conceded, “as long as you don’t plan another one or help anyone else.”

He nodded and slapped the sides of his chair, “Great, let’s go get dinner.” He jumped up and walked towards the door.

Regina blinked at his empty chair, “Did you not hear what I just said?”

Henry’s answering smirk was far too close to Zelena’s, “Mom, you said no operations, and I meant it when I agreed. But you can’t stay down here forever.”

“It’s just until-”

“Do you know when the serum will wear off?” 

“No,” Regina groused.

“So, the longer you stay down here, the more likely it is that Ma will come looking for you. Other people need to see you around town, or she’ll get suspicious.” Regina’s nose scrunched. She hadn’t thought of that. She started contemplating ways around this new problem, when Henry finally took pity on her. “Ma’s having dinner at Gram and Gramp’s. She won’t see you,” he promised. “Besides, it’s depressing down here. You need to get back to normal.” 

“It’s not depressing!” she argued. _I have excellent taste in interior design._

Henry ignored her, though he looked far too smug. “As normal as you can anyway, since half your day is usually spent with Ma.” Regina scowled and remained stubbornly seated; Henry laughed, but his features softened, “Come on, I know Ma’s schedule better than anyone. I promise I won’t let you accidentally run into her until you’re ready or the serum wears off.” Regina supposed it wouldn’t be too bad to go, but it wasn’t until Henry sadly declared, “Please, I don’t want you to be down here by yourself,” that she got up and made her way towards the door.

They were halfway up the stairs when Henry asked, “How’d you get on the serum anyway?”

“I ate one godforsaken snickerdoodle your aunt baked, injected with truth serum, and _left unattended_ with an entire tray of other cookies.” Henry’s deep chuckle followed her out of the crypt.


	4. The Truth

Regina rested her head against the back of her chair as she massaged her temples. She’d diligently returned to her schedule two days ago, as Henry had requested, but there were some adjustments that had to be made. For instance, her secretary had been tasked with telling Emma that Regina wasn’t at her desk every time she came looking for her, and Regina’s lunch break had been moved up an hour, so it no longer coincided with the sheriff department’s. Of course, that meant Regina was already hungry and irritable when she could quite clearly hear Emma asking to see her and being turned away through her door.

She missed Emma. Even setting her romantic feelings aside, the woman had somehow managed to grow on her after all these years and become her friend. Friendship, of course, wasn’t really all that Regina wanted, but she’d learned not to push a good thing. She absently traced the root beer cap keychain Emma had gotten her as a joke. She just needed to wait a few more days until the serum wore off. Then she could go back to spending time with her friend and stoutly ignoring her more than friendly feelings.

A loud knock drew her attention, and she looked up to find Henry standing in the doorway of her office. He grinned as he caught her eye, “Hey, Mom. Ma should be back at the station by now, so I’m ready to go when you are.” 

Regina tilted her head and discreetly moved her hand away from her keychain, “Go where, dear?” She didn’t remember making any plans with her son, but a lot had happened that week. 

Henry pointed in the general direction of Granny’s, “Lunch with Snow. You guys moved it last week when the council meeting had to get bumped up.” 

Regina groaned and muttered, “Yes, I remember now.” She and Snow had made that decision the morning Zelena baked that infernal snickerdoodle, and it had completely slipped her mind. She supposed it was too late to cancel now. Plus Snow might ask her why she was canceling, or Emma might hear about the cancelled plans and feel even more compelled to find her. Regina wasn’t particularly keen on either. 

“Come on, it won’t be that bad,” Henry reasoned as he meandered towards the little dish of mints in the sitting area. “You said the serum hasn’t been that hard to deal with the last few days.”

“I’ve only been at the office and home in the last few days,” Regina countered. “Answering where I’d like the new filing cabinet and listening to Zelena try and convince me to talk to Emma are hardly the same as having lunch with Snow.”

Henry tossed a mint above his head and distractedly said, “That’s why I’m here.” He opened his mouth to catch the mint, but it bounced off his nose. He rubbed at the red mark the mint left before tossing another one into the air, “Well, that and-” he paused to catch the mint, which landed squarely in his mouth. He triumphantly threw his arms up before continuing, “Granny’s got a new shake I want to try.”

Regina rolled her eyes but stood to collect her coat and purse. There was no use in postponing the inevitable, so it seemed she would just have to go and hope for the best. She waited for Henry by the door and the pair made their way towards Granny’s. Henry happily chatted through the walk over and they shortly, much too shortly in Regina’s opinion, found themselves walking through the restaurant’s front patio.

The bell above the door jauntily announced their arrival to the crowded diner, and Snow was quick to spot them and wave them over. Regina noticed that little Neal wasn’t sitting next to his mother as she and Henry maneuvered their way across the room, which wasn’t odd but did mean that Snow would be free to settle her complete attention on Regina. 

She tried to forget her nerves as she slid into the side opposite Snow but Henry didn’t follow after her like she’d expected. He was hovering near the edge of the table and eyeing Regina with a pleading light in his eyes. “The shakes always take a while to make, so I was hoping I could go put an order in at the counter really fast. I’ll be there and back in thirty seconds,” Henry promised. Regina agreed with an eyeroll; she knew better than to stand between a Charming and a milkshake. Besides, if she couldn’t survive thirty seconds alone with Snow then the lunch was clearly cursed from the start.

Henry excitedly turned towards the counter but ended up making a 360 degree turn to face the table again. He seemed to be remembering his manners and asked his grandmother if she’d like him to place a milkshake order for her as well.

“Oh, I didn’t realize they had a new one,” Snow hummed. Henry showed her a picture of the one his friend, Nick, had gotten. He’d already shown Regina on their way to Granny’s, so Regina knew that Snow was looking at a very large, chilled glass filled with several scoops of perfectly blended ice cream topped with whip cream, chopped nuts, cherries (yes, plural), and a drizzle of fudge. It was an absolutely absurd amount of sugar that no reasonable person could possibly eat in one sitting. 

“It looks good but might be a bit much,” Snow mused. “What do you think, Regina?”

“I think it looks delicious,” flew out of Regina’s mouth before she had the chance to stop it. Henry’s head whipped towards her, and she understood why. She’d never expressed the slightest interest in Granny’s desserts before and had talked both he and Emma out of ordering them several times.

Snow also looked mildly surprised and asked, “Do you want to try it?”

Regina immediately answered, “Yes.” _Goddamn this serum._

Henry was smirking in a way that quite clearly told Regina she’d be hearing about this incident for years to come.

Snow laughed, “Really? Emma must be rubbing off on you.”

“I wish,” Regina muttered. She felt her cheeks flush as she realized she’d said that out loud, but Henry, bless him, quickly drew Snow’s attention with a fit of fake coughs before she could question what Regina had said. Ruby came over with a glass of water while Snow patted Henry on the back, and perhaps it was Regina’s imagination, but Ruby seemed to be eyeing her suspiciously. 

After Henry’s coughing tapered off, lunch went much smoother. Ruby walked off with their orders and they managed to stay on safe topics through waiting for them to be placed, sipping their delectable milkshakes, eating their actual meals, all the way to the check. Henry thankfully hadn’t had to run interference again, and Regina found herself having a surprisingly pleasant time, given how stressed she’d been on the way to the diner. She was feeling rather reluctant to announce that it was time for her to return to town hall, but she’d already stayed fifteen minutes longer than she’d planned and there was always the risk that Emma would come in for an afternoon bearclaw.

The words that she needed to take her leave were grudgingly on the tip of her tongue when Snow seemed to remember a previous conversation she had, “Oh, Emma’s been looking for you by the way. She seemed a little worried.” Henry was in the middle of taking a great gulp of water and his startled gurgle wasn’t enough to stop Snow from continuing, “Is everything okay?”

Foolishly taken off guard, Regina answered, “No.”

Henry looked like he was scrambling around in his head for another interruption to prevent the obvious follow up question, but Snow simply looked concerned as she asked, “What’s wrong?”

Henry groaned from his seat next to her, because he knew as well as Regina did that there was no stopping the serum as it sharply prodded her to reply, “I accidently ingested a truth serum, and Zelena won’t stop trying to convince me to tell Emma I’m in love with her.”

Regina and Henry apprehensively watched Snow, waiting for the words to register and cause Snow to shriek in horror or start angrily listing all the reasons Regina wasn’t good enough for Emma or maybe even borrow Granny’s crossbow. Instead that confused look remained on Snow’s face as she blinked at Regina, “Why?”

Assuming Snow was referring to the last part of her confession, Regina couldn’t stop the words from spilling out, “She’s funny, smart, agitating in a way I usually find endearing-”

Snow choked on a laugh, “No, no. I didn’t mean why are you in love with Emma; I meant why does Zelena want you to tell Emma you're in love with her? You’re both adults. You can decide when you’re ready to tell her.”

Regina had to reign in the desire to smack her head against the table, as she growled “Why does everyone assume-,” Regina cut herself off with a huff and refocused on the important matter, “I’m not planning to tell Emma I’m in love with her!”

Snow cocked her head, “Aren’t you in love with her?”

Regina gritted her teeth. _Don’t say it, don’t say it, don’t say it,_ “Yes.” _Damn it!_

Snow placed her hand over Regina’s, “If you’re worried about it being too soon, I’m sure Emma will understand. You can’t help what you feel, and you can’t fight the truth, quite literally.”

Snow chuckled at her own joke, but Regina was bewildered, “Too soon? She has no idea this is even happening, the serum, my feelings… she can’t ever know.”

Snow gave a confused little, “Oh,” then after a few seconds gave a much more surprised, “Oh, so you two haven’t been dating for the last few months?”

Regina didn’t even need the serum to push her this time, “No! I very obviously haven’t been dating Emma.”

Ruby suddenly appeared at the side of their table with a smug grin directed at Snow, “I told you they weren’t.” 

Henry was staring back across the diner where Ruby had been standing a moment ago, “How did you-”

Ruby pointed at her ears, her grin widening, “Wolf hearing.” Henry nodded like he should have guessed that himself.

Regina elected to overlook the eavesdropping in favor of having someone on her side, “Thank you, Ms. Lucas.”

Ruby nodded, “It’s obvious that you two aren’t together.”

That didn’t necessarily make Regina feel better, but at least someone realized the truth. She turned towards Snow again, “You see, Emma and I are clearly-”

Ruby cut across her, obviously enjoying herself, “You just have a fat claim on her.”

Regina’s head whipped towards Ruby, “I don’t-”

Ruby was radiating smugness, “Ah come on, Regina. Emma’s hot and a badass who’s always running around in tight jeans to save the town.” Henry and Snow had matching wrinkled noses and Regina was looking murderous, but Ruby was completely unphased, “You really think no one would be hitting on her if she wasn’t already taken?” 

Rather irritated that her feelings had apparently been much more obvious than she thought, Regina’s response came out a bit sharper and louder than she intended, “Yes, I think many people would be interested in Emma. But whether or not she’s had any suitors brave enough to make their feelings known is hardly my fault. If it wasn’t for this truth serum, I think my feelings for her would hardly be detectable. And as soon as it wears off, there’ll be no cause for Emma to know how I feel.” Shortly after she finished speaking, Regina became aware of the silence that had descended around them. She turned to observe the other diner patrons and found them already looking at her. One glare from her was enough to have them returning to their own conversations, but the damage had clearly been done.

Regina turned back around, and Henry placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Ruby clicked her tongue, “If it makes you feel any better, like at least half those people already thought you and Emma had a thing for each other.”

Regina rubbed her temples, “No, Ms. Lucas. That does not make me feel better.”

“It kinda should though. Here, watch.” Ruby did a quarter turn to look directly at Snow, and after maintaining eye contact for a moment, Ruby asked, “Are you fighting the urge to make out with me? Like at all?”

Snow seemed to ponder that for a moment, and then shook her head, “No, not even a little.”

Ruby hummed, “Great, and why is that?”

“Because we’re just friends.”

“And Regina, are Snow and I making you wonder if you should just get up and leave.”

“Yes, for the last several minutes.”

Ruby rolled her eyes, “You were the wrong person to ask. Henry, is me staring at Snow uncomfortable to look at for longer than two seconds.”

Henry shook his head, “No. It’s a little weird but doesn’t make me uncomfortable.”

“Last question, Snow, if I was looking at you like _I_ wanted to make out with you, how would that make you feel?”

Snow tilted her head, “Probably uncomfortable, because I don’t feel the same way.”

Ruby turned back towards the rest of the table with a triumphant “Ha,” like she’d just made a brilliant point. Regina, however, was far from impressed and about to ask what the hell Ruby was trying to prove when Henry said, “Oh, I see what you’re saying.” 

Regina’s eyebrows furrowed as she looked at Henry, “How is that possible?”

Henry gestured between Ruby and Snow, “Grandma just said that she would’ve been uncomfortable if Ruby was looking at her like she wanted to kiss and stuff, cause she doesn’t feel the same way.” 

He looked at his mother like she should be feeling a light bulb going off. Regina just arched an eyebrow, “I heard her, but I still don’t see how that relates to Emma and me.”

Henry pointed in the direction of the sheriff’s station, “You look at Ma like that and she doesn’t get uncomfortable. She just looks right back.” Henry looked like he was announcing something wonderful as he added, “And that’s why some of those people thought you were already dating. Cause you had that uncomfortable-to-look at thing going on.”

A strong desire to be back in her office and out of the situation pulled Regina to her feet, “It’s time for me to be heading back to town hall. I’ll see you all later.” She patted Henry’s shoulder as she passed and stalked out of the diner.

The trio left at the table watched Regina make her exit. As soon as the door closed, Ruby grinned, “Next time I see her, I’m telling her about the town betting pool on how long it will take them to get together.”

Snow lightly slapped her arm, “Don’t you dare.”

Ruby’s eyes widened, “What? It’s already been going for three months. She’ll find out eventually, and I want to see the fireworks.”

Snow shook her head and took a sip of her tea, “Regina and Emma will get together when the time is right, and they won’t appreciate a gambling game on when that date might be.”

Regina would have appreciated Snow’s thoughtfulness in the moment, if she’d been there to hear it. However, most of what she did hear over the next few days was not particularly appreciated. The news about the serum and a confirmation from Regina herself that the former Evil Queen had feelings for the town’s savior seemed to have swept through the town by the next morning. Regina would have expected people to scoff or gather protectively around their sheriff, but the news appeared to have the opposite effect. 

After Regina’s outburst at the diner, the townspeople seemed to think that they had been granted permission to weigh in on Regina’s chances of wooing Emma, directly to Regina. Nearly everywhere she went, someone felt compelled to tell her their thoughts on the situation, and for some reason Regina couldn’t fathom, almost every last one was overwhelmingly positive. When she was in line at the pharmacy, Sneezy, the walking petri dish, had told her he thought Emma would say yes to a date with her, without the slightest hesitation. When she took Henry to breakfast at Granny’s, Granny came out from behind the counter to tell Regina she always knew that it had only ever been a matter of time before she and Emma got together. When she and Henry stood to leave that same breakfast trip, Leroy had walked up to her, looked her up and down, then firmly shook her hand and said, “You better take care of her, sister.” Henry had found the whole situation rather amusing. Even Katherine, who Regina had had kidnapped and never purposefully released, walked up to Regina when she saw her in the supermarket and said she really thought Regina could win Emma’s heart. 

It was absolutely ridiculous, and Regina had had more than enough of the well-wishers. Though the townspeople had at least had enough sense to not tell Emma. It was one of the few things that kept her from starting small fires to distract people who couldn’t take a hint that she was done with a conversation. 

Eight days post diner incident and Regina had given up on venturing into town, choosing to remain in her office for lunch. She was still just as in the thrall of the serum as she had been the first day, and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep avoiding Emma. Neither one of them was known for their patience, and Emma had an uncanny ability to correctly guess where she was. She imagined that at some point Emma would get tired of waiting and simply barge into her office, as she had many times before. 

So, too worried and distracted to have a hope of being productive, Regina was lightly tracing the edges of her phone as she reread old texts between herself and Emma. A sudden voice startled Regina out of her brooding, “You don’t have to miss her.” She jerked up from her phone and found Zelena standing in her doorway. Her sister’s eyes bounced between her phone and the rootbeer keychain she was absently toying with again, obviously connecting the dots.

Still irritated that her emotions were more obvious than she had ever anticipated, Regina dropped her keys into an open drawer next to her. She glared at her sister, but Zelena stood stubbornly in the doorway, clearly decided against leaving anytime soon. Quickly deciding on another tactic, Regina stood and made her way to the door. When Zelena didn’t move out of her way, Regina said, “I need to speak to my secretary,” and tilted her chin towards the desk just outside and to the right of the door. Instead of moving back into the hall like Regina had hoped she would, Zelena stepped farther into her office and drawled, “Take your time, sis. Robyn is on a play date, so I can wait.” That last part definitely sounded like a threat. 

Regina ground her teeth together but left her sister in her office as she stalked into the hall, closing the door behind her. Her secretary was looking up at her expectantly, clearly having overheard her speak to Zelena. Not wanting to admit she was making up excuses, Regina plucked a post-it and pen off the desk and scrawled out her and Zelena’s coffee orders. “Please go to Granny’s and order these. Get one for yourself as well, and tell Granny to add everything to my tab.”

Her secretary nodded and took the post-it. Out of excuses, Regina begrudgingly began to return to her office when her secretary called, “Oh, Ms. Mills, I think you may have written down the wrong number of creamers.” 

Regina didn’t bother turning around, “No, I didn’t.” The least of her concerns was whether or not her secretary learned just how many creamers she actually liked in her coffee. 

She stepped back into her office and found everything as she’d left it, minus the addition of Zelena gazing out the large window behind her desk, yet something felt not quite right. “You did something,” she accused.

Zelena turned around, “What?”

Regina crossed her arms and slowly drummed her fingers against her arm, “I don’t know. I just have a feeling.” 

Zelena rolled her eyes, “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m here to talk to you.” Regina continued to stand and drum her fingers until Zelena sighed, “Will you at least try not to throw any fireballs this time? I don’t have my magic anymore, a sacrifice which saved this town, if you’ll recall.”

Regina narrowed her eyes, “Is this about Emma again?”

Zelena nodded once, “You need to go see her,” she insisted. Regina groaned and stalked towards the drink cart. Zelena matched each of her steps, “You can’t keep waiting for the serum to-”

“Your serum,” Regina interrupted, pulling the stopper from the nearest decanter. 

Zelena continued like Regina hadn’t spoken, “To fade away. Who knows when it will end? Just tell the bloody savior and then you can stop hiding.”

“I won’t make Emma uncomfortable to ease your guilt about the situation,” Regina snapped, pouring more cider into her glass than she’d intended to.

“Emma won’t be uncomfortable!”

Regina obstinately growled, “I’ve looked it up and the serum will have to fade eventually. It should be any day now.”

Zelena took in a deep breath like she was afraid it would be her last and said, “There is no serum.” Regina scoffed as she took a drink of her cider, and Zelena groaned, “Will you listen to me? I’m being serious.”

“Zelena, I’ve been forced to honestly answer every question anyone has asked me for the last fifteen days. Of course, there’s a serum.”

There was a pregnant pause that drew Regina’s eyes from her glass to Zelena. Their eyes locked and Zelena qualified, “I never said there wasn’t anything in the snickerdoodle you ate. I just said there wasn’t a serum.” At the dangerous light beginning to glow in Regina’s eyes, Zelena added, “Right, I’ll explain.” And she did, with lots of description, but the more she said, the heavier the rock settling in Regina’s stomach seemed to be.

“So you see, all you need is True Love’s kiss and this will all be over. It’s also set to only break with a romantic True Love’s kiss, so it’ll have to be Emma.” Zelena finished, surprised but pleased that she’d been able to get through her explanation. 

Regina was staring at the wall, processing, “You cursed me?”

Taking advantage of the dazed look on Regina’s face, Zelena continued to unfold the whole debacle, “When I started thinking about putting some sort of truth potion in Emma’s food, I thought about serums, but they’re so much work to brew.”

Regina squeezed the bridge of her nose, her voice coming out a little stronger, “You cursed me.”

Zelena didn’t seem to notice as she carried on “Then I thought, ‘Well, I may not have powers, but I’m still the Wicked Witch,’ even reformed or whatever the heroes call it. And I’m still technically reformed, because I was never going to actually use the truth curse on anyone. But the point is, I already knew how to make a curse, and the truth curse is simple to make, really.”

Regina slammed her glass down, “You cursed me!”

Zelena’s eyes widened slightly at Regina’s outburst, “It was a slight understatement. Honestly! If you weren’t so stubborn, you never would’ve needed to know!”


	5. Zelena's Over The Angst

It had been two weeks, _two weeks!_ , since Regina had disappeared in front of her. And, despite what Zelena had said, Emma was no closer to knowing what the hell had happened. In fact, besides the reminder to take Henry to the dentist, Emma hadn’t seen or heard from Regina since.

As sheriff, she would have felt responsible to organize a search party for the mayor, except Emma appeared to be the _only_ person in all of Storybrooke struggling to get in contact with Regina. She was sent straight to voicemail when she attempted to call the woman, and all her texts went unopened. Yet, according to Snow, Regina had been perfectly fine and in possession of her cellphone when the pair had had lunch the day before.. The few times Emma had tried to find Regina at her office, the mayor’s secretary insisted that Regina had just stepped out for a meeting and hadn’t given a return time. It was Regina’s week with Henry and their son swore he was having a blast with his brunette mother, though his smug expression had been uncomfortably reminiscent of Zelena’s whenever she now saw Emma. Hell, even Granny had seen Regina and had happily reported that the mayor was her usual, sassy self.

The whole situation left Emma with an odd frustration; she found herself annoyed by the lack of new villains to come and distract her, as well as the prickly little voice in the back of her head that kept insisting this was somehow her fault. The latter wasn’t helped by the feeling that more and more people were beginning to look at her expectantly whenever she went out in public. Emma would think she was becoming paranoid about it if it weren’t for the fact that her own father kept stealing glances at her as she threw darts at the station’s dart board. Unluckily for him, that last glance was the last Emma could take and so she spun towards him and finally snapped, “What?”

David quickly cleared his throat and looked back at the finished report he’d had on his desk for the last ten minutes, “Nothing, just going through some paperwork.”

Emma ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath as she turned towards Mulan, who had been quietly sharpening her sword in the corner. “Do you know what’s been going on with everyone?”

Mulan gave Emma an appraising look before going back to her sword with a neutral, “It’s not my place to say.”

Emma raised her eyebrows and turned back towards her dad and demanded, “So, there is something then?”

David shifted uncomfortably in his seat, but held his daughter’s stare, “Uh, well, you see…” he paused to scratch the back of his head, “Have you seen Regina lately?”

Emma felt a little stung that David would bring that up when he knew perfectly well she hadn’t. “No, I haven’t seen her,” she grumbled as she turned and threw another dart at the board. It was a tense few minutes before Emma gave up on her game and went back to her office to glare at the last report she’d been working on, not really taking in any of the scribbled details of her latest search for an escaped Pongo, when her phone buzzed on her desk. She flipped it over to find a text from Regina.

Wait, _Regina._ Emma almost knocked her chair over as she bolted upright and swiped open the text. It was short and to the point, _Meet me in my office. Don’t bother knocking, just come in._ Emma read the text through twice, not quite believing her eyes, before bounding out of her chair. She grabbed her keys and quickly strode out of her office. She paused just long enough to check that her dad and Mulan were okay covering the station while she stepped out. A few minutes later she was hopping out of the bug and climbing the few flights of stairs towards Regina’s office.

Once Emma got to the mayor’s floor, she could see from down the hall that Regina’s secretary wasn’t at her desk. She wondered if that was coincidental or if it had anything to do with the voices carrying down the hall.

The first voice was a distinctly defensive Zelena arguing, “It was a slight understatement. Honestly! If you weren’t so stubborn, you never would’ve needed to know!”

Emma continued down the hall, as Regina’s disbelieving voice overtook Zelena’s, “Understatement!? You call this an understatement? You said three days, and it’s been fifteen! Now you’re telling me it won’t wear off at all?”

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic. If you’d be in the same room as the savior for more than two seconds, this could be over.” At the mention of her title, Emma paused just before she reached the doors to Regina’s office that had been left cracked open.

There were a few seconds of silence before Regina responded so quietly, Emma found herself leaning forward to catch it all. “I will not put Emma in such an awkward position.”

Zelena snorted, “Please, we both know that’s one of many positions the sheriff would enjoy you putting her in.”

Emma felt her cheeks flush as Regina snapped, “This isn’t a joke, Zelena!”

“You’re right, sis. It’s pathetic. The fearsome Regina Mills running like a coward, even though the entire town knows what’s happening. It’s a bloody miracle the sheriff hasn’t found out already.”

Before Regina could respond, a voice echoed down the hall, “Oh, Sheriff Swan, you shouldn’t be here. The mayor is very busy at the moment.” Emma glanced behind her to see Regina’s secretary doing an awkward half-walk, half jog towards her while balancing a tray of to-go cups.

However, before the secretary could reach Emma, Zelena threw the office doors open and with a roll of her eyes announced, “Don’t bother. Regina’s already left.” Then the redhead folded her arms and looked expectantly towards Emma.

After a solid five seconds of Zelena staring at her, Emma caved in, “What?”

Zelena sighed something that sounded a lot like “Idiots deserve each other,” before prompting, “You overheard at least part of the conversation, yes? Even you have to be able to put two and two together.”

“Were you the one who texted me off Regina’s phone?”

Zelena squeezed the bridge of her nose, “Obviously, now try to realize something that actually matters.”

Emma’s eyebrows furrowed, “She’s avoiding me.”

Zelena began to look mildly hopeful, “And?”

Emma forced herself not to rock back on her heels as she rubbed the back of her neck, “I don’t know, I must have done something to upset her.”

“So, then why are you standing here? Go ask her.” Zelena spun Emma around and gave her a not-so-gentle nudge towards the exit. But Emma refused to budge.

“She obviously doesn’t want to see me, Zelena. Why don’t you stop making this complicated and just tell me?” Emma demanded.

“Oh, please. If anyone’s making this painfully complicated, it’s the two of you.” Emma opened her mouth to object but Zelena pressed, “And if you think my sister would have let _you_ get away with avoiding her for this long, you’re even more of an idiot than I thought. I doubt you’d even make it three days before she tracked you down and demanded answers.”

Emma dragged a hand over her face, “I’ve tried to find her. I’ve looked everywhere in Storybrooke, but she’s impossible to find.”

Zelena narrowed her eyes, “Rubbish.”

Emma felt her eyebrows rise on her forehead, “What?”

“I said ‘rubbish.’” Zelena enunciated slowly. “If you can’t find Regina, it’s because you don’t want to find her.” Emma’s mouth snapped open to defend herself, but Zelena cut her off, “No. I’ve already been subjected to Regina’s nonsense excuses for too long. You two may be determined to drag this on for years, but I’m finished. The pining is nauseating.”

Emma jerked in surprise, “Pining!? What-”

“Absolutely _nauseating_ .” Zelena plowed on. “I’ve tortured my fair share, with _years_ of expert precision, but even I wouldn’t be cruel enough to make someone suffer through a dinner with you two. Full of all that longing and the goddamn eye fuc-”

A loud cough interrupted Zelena, who turned to glare at Regina’s forgotten secretary. “Oh, stuff it, Muffy. You have to watch it almost as often as I do. Look Emma in the eye and tell her you’re not tired of watching her and my sister flounder around their feelings for each other like bumbling idiots.”

Regina’s secretary shot Zelena a scathing look and mumbled “You know that’s not my name,” before turning towards the sheriff. The secretary took a determined breath like she was going to dismiss Zelena’s claim, but the seconds began to stretch and stretch until the woman deflated slightly with a sheepish, “Sorry, Sherriff.”

“Ha!” Zelena cackled.

“Look, you two can think what you want, but Regina and I are just friends,” Emma argued. And she was right. Of course. Regina didn’t want her, not like that. And she in-turn didn’t have any romantic feelings for Regina. Obviously. Or at least not recently. Not _very_ recently anyway… Whatever, she was working on it, and she wasn’t about to risk her family over a crush she was sure would eventually fade.

“Oh, for God’s sake, Swan!” Zelena scoffed “You became the bloody Dark One for her!”

Emma crossed her arms, refusing to budge. “I did that for the town. The Darkness would’ve killed everyone.”

“And how would you explain Regina trapezing across realms every time you get yourself stuck somewhere? It took Rumpelstiltskin centuries to enact a plan that could get him to this realm once, yet Regina always finds a way to get to you in a matter of hours.”

Emma forced her feet not to shuffle and did her best to ignore the way her stomach flipped as she reasoned, “We’re family.”

Zelena scrunched her nose in distaste, “If my sister looked at me the way she looks at you I’d gouge my eyes out.”

Regina’s secretary choked out a laugh that she had the sense to try and disguise as a cough.

“Besides, you know bloody well that’s not all. Crossing realms, always finding each other, and risking your neck for each other so often it’s gotten tedious. Really the only thing you two haven’t done is break a curse,” Zelena goaded.

“We’re not-”

“Yes, yes, you’re friends, you share a son, you’re both idiots in denial of the other’s feelings. We know.”

“I’m not in denial.” Emma insisted, though she was now wondering if they _could_ break a curse if they needed to.

“Well, I could have said you’ve both shoved your heads so far up your own asses you could be used as infinity scarves, but I thought that might be rude.”

Emma pinched the bridge of her nose, “Stop it, Regina doesn’t love me. Not like that.”

Zelena quirked an eyebrow, “Would you like the list of times you two have acted like love-sick fools? I only have a couple hours before I’m supposed to pick up Robin, but we can certainly cover a few.”

“Will you stop-”

“Shall we begin with the Wish Realm? Or perhaps Camelot-”

“Camelot? My entire family came to Camelot for me.” Emma interrupted.

Zelena rolled her eyes, “And how do you think we were able to do that? You didn’t really believe the pirate when he said he always found a way, did you? All that idiot did was take the magic cuff off my wrist and almost let me escape. It was Regina who cleaned up the prat’s mess and figured out how to get everyone you love to you. She’s always the one to find you and the one to go running to save you.”

“Regina has been running _from_ me for weeks,” Emma snapped, the hurt from being dodged by one of the people she cared about most getting caught in her voice. “Just me.” She clenched and unclenched her fists, “If Regina really loved me like you think she does, I wouldn’t be the one person in Storybrooke she’s avoiding like the plague.”

Zelena finally fell silent and dropped her eyes to the floor, and that was all the confirmation Emma needed to prove Zelena knew she was right. She ran a hand over her face and sighed, “Look, I’ll be at the station if you need me.”

Emma turned and made it halfway down the hall before she heard Regina’s secretary hiss, “Don’t let her walk away! Tell her.” Emma kept walking as Zelena grumbled something too low to make out clearly. There was a dull smacking sound and the secretary threatened, “If you don’t tell her, I will.”

The sheriff made it two more steps before Zelena called, “Emma.”

Emma begrudgingly turned back around to find Zelena rubbing her arm and Regina’s secretary looking expectantly at the redhead. “Yeah?”

Zelena brushed some lint off her sleeve, “I may know why Regina is avoiding you, and it’s not your fault.”

Emma tried to ignore the hopeful feeling in her chest as she crossed her arms, “Who’s fault is it?”

The secretary snorted, “Take a guess.”

“Oh, shut it, Molly,” Zelena snapped.

The secretary snapped back, “Jane! My name is Jane.”

“Oh, don't be ridiculous. That's not even close to Molly.”

“Can we focus, please?” Emma impatiently cut in. “Why is Regina avoiding me?”

For perhaps the first time ever, there was a contrite tint to Zelena’s haughty expression. “I knew you two would take years to realize how the other felt, and in an effort to save her some of that time and spare the rest of the town the agony, I may have somewhat accidentally done something. Granted, I may have forgotten how stubborn Regina can be…”


	6. Down Once More (To The Vault)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you want a visual on how the vault connects the secret room in the vault, check season two, episode twelve and start it at 12 minutes and 34 seconds.

Emma pushed the fake coffin out of her way and dashed down the steps to the vault. Regina had probably heard her car pull up and may have left already, but damn it, Emma had to try. She made a sharp right when her feet reached the bottom step and came face to face with a huge mirror on a brick wall, the one Zelena told her she couldn’t miss (“Although you’ve missed every bloody ‘come hither’ look Regina has, so who knows.”) 

Emma gave her heartbeat a moment to slow as her eyes ran over the mirror. She couldn’t tell if Regina was watching her through it or not, but she was pretty sure she was somewhere close by. Still a little breathless from running at top speed, Emma looked squarely into the mirror and called, “Regina, I know you’re here. Please, don’t hide.”

There were several seconds of silence where Emma restlessly bounced on the balls of her feet and drummed her fingertips against her thighs until there was a deep click from the wall in front of her. The wall swung back like it was on hinges, and Regina appeared in the opening. She had one side pressed against the wall and her hands wrapped around her middle. She looked tense and not overly excited to be there, but she was there.

Emma’s hands finally stilled as she drank Regina in. She really had missed her, and even with the tension around them, Emma couldn’t fight the smile that tugged at the corner of her lips, “Hi.” 

Regina took a deep breath but didn’t return her smile, “Hello.”

Uneasy silence ensued and Emma wasn’t quite sure how to proceed. She’d thought about telling Regina how she felt many times before, but every time she tried the thought of messing up what she already had chased the words out of her mouth. But Emma couldn’t back out this time, not when Regina had her eyes fixed on Emma’s shoulder like she was afraid to look any higher. _Come on, Swan,_ Emma internally urged herself, _You can do this._ She lightly shook herself and cleared her throat, _Okay, here we go, for better or worse, in three, two-_

“Emma,” Regina gingerly called. Emma looked up from where her eyes had fallen to her shoes and found Regina watching her. She felt her shoulders relax as their eyes met and held, _Right, I can do this. It’s just Regina._ However, Regina didn’t seem to be experiencing the same calming effect. Her shoulders looked tight and her fingers visibly flexed against her sides as she continued in that same soft tone, “I’m sure you’re confused and maybe even angry with me. If you’ll let me explain-”

“Wait no,” Emma interrupted, realizing Regina had the wrong idea about her purpose for being there. “I’m not mad, and I’m not here for an explanation either.” The tension visibly melted from Regina’s shoulders, even if she still looked a bit wary.

Emma shifted her feet awkwardly, regretting not practicing what to say. It had seemed like such a good plan to go with something from the heart and in the moment rather than something planned on the drive over. Unfortunately, her heart felt like a mess without a coherent thought in sight. 

Eventually, Regina prompted, “Emma?”

Emma blinked, sheepishly realizing she’d been staring at Regina for several seconds, “Yeah?”

Regina tilted her head slightly to the left, “I asked why you’re here then.”

“Right,” Emma rocked back on her heels but resisted the urge to bolt up the stairs and try again tomorrow. _I’m the_ _Savior_ _dammit. I can do this._ She’d fought monsters and ghosts and weird doppelganger people. Nothing had ever frightened her… except for serious relationship commitment... But not serious relationship commitment with Reigna. That was different. She wanted that; she was just stuck in her head. She just needed to say it, especially because Regina was still waiting for an answer. Just lay it all on the table. Just get it all out. Like ripping off a band-aid, quick enough that the pain doesn’t register until it’s already over. So Emma took a deep breath, firmly planted her feet, and opened her mouth, fully intent on laying her heart on the line, but all that came out was, “Feelings.”

Regina arched a confused eyebrow and repeated, “Feelings?”

Emma internally cringed but powered on, “Yeah, I have… feelings.”

Regina’s eyes softened as her wariness melted away and was replaced by guilt, “I know you do, Emma. I never meant to- these last two weeks-”

Now seriously regretting not planning what to say, Emma cut across her, “No, for you.”

Regina looked like she was concerned Emma had recently hit her head, “Pardon?”

“For you, are my feelings.” _For fucks sake, I’m terrible at this_ , she tried again, “I have feelings for you.” _Finally_. Emma rocked back on her heels again, not feeling at all patient but trying to appear so as she waited for Regina to say something, anything. But Regina didn’t say anything. She just stood, staring at Emma with furrowed eyebrows. The silence stretched and stretched until Emma couldn’t take it any longer and decided she may as well dive all the way in, “I know you’re under a truth curse and that’s why you’re avoiding me. I know that there’s something you don’t want to tell me, and that’s okay. I just-”

Emma sighed and took a step forward, “I just needed you to know, and I’m not asking you to say it back. I don’t want to force you, and I’m not even sure it’s reciprocated or wishful thinking but…” she trailed off for a second. Regina’s face had smoothed and was impossible to read. Emma silently hoped she wasn’t just digging herself deeper into something she’d never be able to get out of, but it was probably too late one way or the other, so she added, “But I have feelings for you, so if you’re hiding because you feel the same or if it’s something else, you really don’t have to. I’m not going anywhere.” 

Regina continued to stand and stare, apparently speechless, face still blank and impossible to read. Which was quite terrifying for Emma. She’d always been able to read Regina before. She’s not quite sure how long they stood there blinking at each other, but eventually Emma scratched the back of her neck and mumbled, “Well anyway. That’s pretty much what I had to say so… I’ll give you some time to process and stuff. Just, uh, give me a call when you’re ready to talk.”

She took a step back but before she could even turn all the way around, Regina called, “Emma.” Emma was pretty sure her throat had turned to actual sandpaper but shoved her hands in her back pockets and forced herself to stand still, ignoring the easy escape route behind her. Another stretch of silence eventually lead Emma’s eyes to wander up from the floor and meet Regina’s again. Regina’s eyebrows were puzzledly furrowed, and she sounded like she was sure she’d misheard as she asked, “You have feelings for me?”

Emma uncomfortably rolled her shoulders, “Yeah.”

Regina took a cautious step towards her, “Romantic feelings?”

Emma tried to stamp down on the painfully hopeful thud her heart did when Regina moved closer to her, “Yes.”

Regina took another step towards Emma and then another until she was standing right in front of her. Hesitantly, like she wasn’t sure whether she was allowed to or not, Regina reached out and cupped Emma’s cheek with her hand, and Emma couldn’t help but lean into it. Her hands automatically placed themselves on Regina’s hips, and the pair stood like that for a moment, drinking each other in, until the latter asked, “For how long?”

Emma gently shrugged her shoulders, not wanting to disturb Regina’s hand, “It’s been awhile since it first registered, but once it did, I realized that I’d been feeling that way for a long time before that.” Emma lightly brushed her thumbs up Regina’s sides and asked, “What are you thinking?”

“I love you,” immediately slipped past Regina’s lips, followed by a sharp inhale.

Emma’s heart lept in her chest, “Really?”

“Truely.” Regina said with a wry smile, “I know it’s really too soon to say something like that, but this curse makes it very difficult to be subtle or act socially competent.”

Emma was trying very hard not to grin like an idiot and failing quite spectacularly at it, “That’s okay. Subtlety doesn’t seem like either of our styles anyway.” And with the same idiotic grin she was sure would last for several weeks, Emma breathed, “Regina?”

“Yes?”

“I think I’m going to kiss you.”

Regina smiled up at her, “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”

And, if she wasn’t before, Emma’s really ginning like an idiot now as she leaned down to kiss Regina. Her eyes were closed when their lips met, but she felt a great rush of wind sweep away from them and a warmth flooding her body as the curse broke. 

They eventually pull apart and lean their heads close together. Emma’s nose brushed against Regina’s as she quietly laughed, “I’m glad that worked or this might have been kinda awkward.”

Regina gently shook her head, but she was biting back a smile, and her eyes were making Emma feel soft inside. That never happened with Hook. 

Emma's smile widened as she promised, “Definitely still would have been worth it though.”

Regina agreed with another kiss. 


	7. Epilogue

TWO AND A HALF YEARS LATER

It had turned out a little cliché if Regina were honest, her and Emma’s wedding reception. Snow had been really excited to help plan it, and Henry had envisioned something fit for a fairytale. Zelena had wanted to plaster rainbows everywhere, but those decorations had mysteriously disappeared just before the rehearsal dinner. What they did have at the reception was a dance floor lined with strings of twinkle lights, several cheesy speeches, and once tasteful favors that had been pinned with rainbow buttons that had somehow escaped Regina’s purge -er- the magical disappearance of its fellow colorful friends. And though it was a touch cliché, Regina very much enjoyed the party as she and Emma swayed to their first dance, even if Emma was still chuckling over Zelena’s speech. “Emma,” Regina groaned, “She started the speech with ‘we are gathered here to-gay.’”

Emma snorted, just as she had when Zelena said it, “I liked the creativity.”

Regina rolled her eyes but conceded, “At least it was tamer than the first draft she showed me.” Emma lifted a questioning eyebrow and Regina divulged, “Her first draft claimed credit for our entire relationship and ended with an asterisk that said ‘exit to glitter bombs.’”

“I’m more surprised that she took the glitter bombs out than that she had them in the first place,” Emma said playfully. “Honestly though, I think she could have said anything, and I’d be fine with it. I’m just glad we got together when we did." Her voice softened as she continued, "It took me a long time to find a home, but I’ve finally found mine, and I don’t want to waste a second.”

“God, you’ve gotten soft,” Regina murmured as she tilted her head to kiss just under Emma’s ear. And if her eyes were noticeably wet, Emma was kind enough not to comment. After a few more turns about the dance floor, Regina softly promised, “We would’ve gotten there, you know. With or without Zelena’s curse.” She cleared her throat, “Even if we were too afraid to take a chance, I’m sure Henry’s plan to get us together would’ve made us face our feelings, even if the plan was outlandish.”

Emma tilted her head as she twirled Regina, “He never told me about that. What did he have planned?”

Regina’s eyebrows furrowed as she recalled, “He never gave the full details, but if I remember correctly, he said the plan involved trip wire, mistletoe, a fireworks display, and a lobster for some reason.” Emma laughed and Regina grinned as she continued, “And before you say he was joking, he showed me the fireworks permit he’d had approved in preparation.”

“Wouldn’t you have had to sign off on that.”

Regina nodded, “That’s the impressive part, I did. He filed under the name Les B. Onest. It had already been stamped by the parks department, so I never questioned the authenticity.”

Emma chuckled, “I can’t believe you fell for that.”

“He’s your son,” Regina teased. “And I’m glad you find it amusing, because I believe we’ll find the permit framed, wrapped, and waiting amongst the wedding gifts for us.”

Emma thoughtfully hummed, “Hmm, maybe this is our chance to make a wall of other people’s attempts to get us together. Do you think Zelena would bake another batch of snickerdoodles and frame one for us?”

Regina leaned back so she could look Emma squarely in the eye as she declared, “You’re absurd.” 

Emma smirked, “You married me.”

The song was coming to a close as Regina leaned her forehead against Emma’s and hummed, “I never said that wasn’t one of the many things I love about you.”

The final notes of the song faded away and were quickly replaced by the sudden sharp tinkling noise of Zelena tapping a butter knife against her glass, an action quickly picked up by the rest of the crowd. Zelena’s voice rang across the din, “Kiss, you half-baked nutters!” 

Regina shook her head at her sister but leaned up quite willingly to kiss Emma. It was a very good kiss in a long line of excellent kisses spanning across a lifetime.


End file.
